GREEN BAY – This was supposed to be the game the Packers finally got their running game on track.
Josh Jacobs was back in action for the second straight week, and the Panthers came in with the league's worst rushing defense.
But the production wasn't there – 26 rushes for 66 yards, including one explosive on an 18-yard reverse – in the 27-19 Thursday Night Football victory over Carolina at Lambeau Field.
On a night quarterback Jordan Love minimized any poor throws and the Packers' defense kept the Panthers on their heels most of the contest, the absence of a running game continued to stand out as the biggest issue that could hold Green Bay back from being as good as it would like to be.
"We've got to improve because, especially late in the game, you've got to be able to lean on that," Love said. "We weren't able to finish the way we wanted."
The rough finish started with Love's worst throw of the game, maybe of the season.
Early in the fourth quarter, leading 27-13, the Packers faced third-and-8 from the Carolina 27-yard line, well within field-goal range to restore a three-score lead if they didn't convert.
Love took a shot to the end zone to Matthew Golden, but the ball hung up long enough for Panthers S Zakee Wheatley to swoop over for the interception at the goal line.
"That's really the play that's going to haunt me from that game," Love said. "I left it way inside and the safety was able to come over and make an interception that was really easy. I'm really sick about that decision."
Green Bay's defense quickly forced a punt, though, and the offense got another chance to put the game away. But a Josh Jacobs run on second-and-2 was stuffed and a third-down pass was batted down, forcing a punt.
The Packers' next possession netted minus-15 yards due to a pair of penalties, and a final drive with 2:41 left managed one first down but still required a pass to Christian Watson on third-and-2 because the running game simply wasn't reliable.
It was a display of how not to close out a game, all stemming from the inability to count on anything on the ground, which impacts play-calling, decision-making, and everything in between.
Love was actually lucky his third-and-2 pass with 11 minutes left was batted down at the line, because it appeared linebacker Devin Lloyd was cutting into the passing lane for a potential interception.
"It was disappointing," LaFleur said of the finish. "We tried to lean on the run game and we went backwards.
"It puts a lot of pressure on your pass game to continue to just find ways to move the ball down the field. We have got to find something we can hang our hat on in the run game, and unfortunately we have not done that yet."
Aside from the injury situation, it's the sorest of sore thumbs for this 5-3 Packers team. Yet another guard combination, with Aaron Banks at left guard and Laken Tomlinson moving from left to right guard, didn't help the running game, though the pass protection was more stout in a game Love threw the ball a ton.
So what do the Packers do now? If they can't run the ball against the league's bottom-ranked run defenses – Dallas came into Lambeau two weeks ago ranked last before Carolina usurped that spot – then what?
LaFleur put it on himself and the coaching staff, emphasizing it's their jobs to find answers. Jacobs didn't have any, either, though he's not about to give up.
"I honestly don't know," he said. "I've never been in this situation. But there's a lot of hope."
Hope isn't a plan, however, not that it's Jacobs' job to construct one. He was simply expressing confidence in his teammates and himself that they can make the necessary improvements.
And maybe they can. John Williams was playing just his second game at center in place of the injured Sean Rhyan, Banks was back for the first time since Week 2, and Tomlinson hadn't played right guard in more than a decade.
LaFleur explained with Banks' return, Tomlinson had been playing too well to send him to the bench, so he's got the nod for now over the other veteran guard acquisition, Kevin Zeitler.
But thus far, no specific line combo nor Jacobs' return has provided the anticipated boost. Without it, the offense won't ever click on all cylinders, no matter how well Love plays and how much burden he successfully carries. It will only magnify his rare mistakes, like the fourth-quarter pick.
"You feel like you can put a team away and you don't, that's frustrating, for sure," Love said. "You got to find ways to be at your best.
"Anytime we get a win, we love that. But how do we get better? There's definitely more out there for us."
